Costume Party
by thoughtsmussingsandwishes
Summary: Snow and Charming decide to have a costume party for Halloween...but with a twist. Will the events leading up the the party force Emma and Regina to reevaluate the nature of their relationship? SwanQueen endgame! Set a few years after the season 4 finale where it goes a little AU.
1. Sunday Dinner

This one is a slow-burn guys. Sorry about any mistakes.

As always, I do not own the rights to any of the content of Once Upon a Time.

Family dinners on Sunday had become somewhat of a staple for the Charming clan in the last few years. This clan of course included Emma, Regina, and Henry.

Tonight, Snow and David were hosting the dinner. They had finally moved into their own house and loved to have people over now that they had more space. Emma kept the tiny flat for herself and Henry.

A very pregnant Snow sets the table as the others move to take their seats in the dinning room. David sits the head of the table with Emma on his left and Snow on his right. Neal sits next to Snow and Regina sits next to Emma. Finally Henry takes his usual seat across from Regina. Once they are all settled and eating, Snow clears her throat to get the group's attention.

"David and I have an announcement." She says.

"Are you having twins or something?" Emma interrupts.

"Twins would be so cool!" Henry says excitedly.

"Oh yes, twice the work and half the sleep." Regina drawls. "I hope you have twins also." She adds the last part in a much more chipper tone. She may love the Charmings but they can still annoy her like nobody else can.

"We're not having twins!" Charming rapidly assures them. He looks disturbed by the suggestion of even less sleep.

"No, we're not." Snow confirms. "I was going to say that David and I are having a Halloween party."

"Why did you need such an official announcement for it?" Emma asks while laughing.

"Your mother always was a drama queen." Regina informs her. "Or drama princess, I should say."

Snow glares at the two women. She loves that her daughter and her former-step mother are friends; she just wishes they wouldn't gang up on her so often!

"We just wanted to invite you." David says on his wife's behalf.

"Yes, it will be held here at eight o'clock on Saturday." Snow says gaining back some of her former excitement. "It's going to be a costume party…but with a catch."

"Which is…" Regina asks cautiously.

"Everyone has to dress like the fictional versions of themselves from this world."

"So you are going to dress up like the cartoon version of yourself. Like with the red bow and everything?" Emma questions.

"There are actually several movie versions of my story, but yes I will probably choose the classic cartoon." She answers.

"As much as that would be amusing to see, I think I will pass on that party." Regina says and resumed eating. They had all stopped when Snow had started her announcement.

"Yeah, me too." Emma says.

"Emma, you are our daughter, you are kind of required to come when we have a party." Snow says, much to Emma's dismay.

"I was never big into playing dress up." Emma argues, "Besides, they never made a sequel to Snow White, so there is no version of my story in this world."

"Maybe not technically," Henry interjects, "but you are basically the Swan Princess, and they do have a cartoon of that."

"Exactly!" Snow says. She is clearly ready to jump on any suggestion that will require Emma to come.

"Fine!" Emma relents knowing that Snow won't. "But you're coming too." She says looking at Regina.

"I'm not her daughter. I don't have to go." Regina reminds her.

"No, but Henry is our son and I'm making him go too." Emma explains. "Plus, I will show up at your house that night and not leave until you come with me! I can be pretty persistent."

"Don't I know it." Regina remarks. The tone of her voice is laced with innuendo. She all but winks, at Emma.

Emma tries to hide her blush as she takes a drink. Emma and Regina had always had an easy banter, but lately that banter had taken on much more of a flirtatious tone than before. Emma supposes it's because neither of them have been in a relationship for a long time.

Suddenly Emma is exceptionally more excited about the party though. She can't wait to see Regina in one of her "Evil Queen" outfits…without the underlying context of potentially being murdered by the other woman.

"Can I dress up?" Neal asks. Successfully breaking up a moment that was slowly becoming awkward for the other guests.

"Of course!" Snow says. "You're our Prince!"

"Who will you be Henry?" Neal asks. Henry is a role model to the toddler, which his mothers think is absolutely adorable. Henry likes it too. His mother's can't seem to get their act together so he imagines that it's the closest thing he'll ever get to a younger sibling.

"I'm not sure. I'm not in the book or anything. I'll think of something though." He assures Neal.

"Lovely!" Snow exclaims "Michael said he would tell Hansel and Gretel about the party so you won't be the only young person there."

The rest of the dinner was spent with talk of plans for the upcoming event.


	2. Monday work calls

Sorry about the mentions of CaptainSwan in this chapter. I had to address why these ladies are single though!

It's only mid-morning on Monday and Emma already finds herself in a moment of distress. She's completely overwhelmed as she looks at the endless aisles full of Halloween costumes.

Normally she would not stress so much about a costume, but she knows her mother fully expects her to dress up properly for the party. She also knows the temporary Halloween store just outside of town probably won't have a Swan Princess costume, but she is hoping there is at least _something_ she could use here.

But alas, it is starting to seem like there is no hope. Every adult costume looks the same.

Slutty.

Slutty nurse. Slutty maid. Slutty vampire.

Emma briefly wonders if vampires are real too, before shaking her head. _True blood_ is a good show and all but she really hopes she never has to find out if they are real or not.

Just as her mind is wondering about the truth behind all of the costumes in the store she stops dead in front of a rack toward the back. On the rack there are multiple outfits with skull and cross bones. Big hats, stuffed parrots, and eye patches are scattered on the rack to the left of them. Immediately her train of thought comes to a halt and she is overridden with a feeling of guilt.

It's the same guilt she always feels when she thinks of him.

Killian.

Even now, years after being freed from the dark one's curse, she feels a stab in her gut when she thinks of his death.

That's understandable. After all, it had been her fault.

Sure it was he who decided to "be a hero" and try to save her on his own. His own stupidity and arrogance getting himself killed, but she still felt horrible about it.

She knows he wasn't her true love or anything and she isn't sure what kind of future they would even have had, but he was still her friend and she had cared about him.

It's hard not to care about someone when they care so much about you.

And Emma had had so few people care about her in the past, that it hurt to have someone who did be taken away from her.

She forces herself away from the rack and back down the aisle. She should really be getting back to work soon anyway and she doesn't want to be in an even worse mood than she already is.

 _Shit._ She almost forgot she had the afternoon shift at work.

She pulls out her phone and calls the familiar number.

"Hello Miss Swan." She hears the sultry voice answer on the other end. Emma's mood is rapidly lifting upon hearing the other woman's voice.

"Good Morning Madam Mayor."

"Is this call for work or pleasure?" Regina asks after the greetings.

"It's always a pleasure to talk to you." Emma says in an attempt at flattery.

Regina sees (or hears) right through Emma's flattery. "What do you want?" She asks suspiciously.

"I forgot I had to work this afternoon and I was wondering if you could pick Henry up from his book club on your way home from the office." Emma asks her. She is not even going to pretend like she doesn't need a favor.

"Of course." Regina agrees. Emma wasn't really worried though considering there isn't much she wouldn't do when it came to Henry.

"Thanks." She replies gratefully. After a pause long enough for Regina to notice she inquires if there was something else that Emma needed.

"No…I should probably let you get back to work…" Still Emma doesn't make any attempt to hang up the phone. She is still strolling the aisles while talking and is happy for the distraction of the other woman. She is therefore reluctant to hang up the phone.

Regina senses the reluctance and puts down her pen she was writing with to give the blonde her full attention. "What are you doing now?" She asks to get Emma talking about whatever was bothering her.

"I'm at the Halloween store looking for a costume."

"Any luck?"

"Nope. I'm starting to think I should just wear a crown and a t shirt with a swan on it." Emma jokes.

Regina chuckles. "That would be a sight worth seeing…and I don't mean the outfit dear, I mean the fit that Snow will throw because you made a mockery of her party."

Emma mood is definitely lifting. "Yeah, but I can't think of anywhere else to look for a costume and she didn't exactly give us enough warning to buy one online."

"She wears a white dress correct?" Regina asks, but continues before Emma can confirm or deny it. "You could buy one of those anywhere."

"Yes but her dress has all of these accents of blue or green or something." Emma complains.

"Then make your mother add them to the dress." She suggests. "She's the reason for your stress in the first place."

"You're brilliant." Emma says once she warms to the idea. She may even have enough time today to buy a dress before she has to head back to town.

"Yes, I know." Despite the arrogance of the worlds she is smiling at the compliment.

"And so modest." Emma comments sarcastically.

"Says a Charming." Regina counters.

Emma can only laugh at the rebuttal. Regina is happy that whatever was bothering Emma's seems to have faded.

"Okay well I should really let you go now. Thanks for the idea though…and for picking up Henry." Emma finally says.

"Anytime dear. Have a nice day." She says sincerely.

"You too." Emma says before she hangs up with a smile.


	3. Tuesday appointments

A warning that this chapter is a longer than the last two. As always I hope you enjoy it and feel free to comment!

On Tuesday, Regina sat at Granny's waiting rather impatiently for her lunch companion. She tries to read the newspaper that has been sitting in front of her for the last 15 minutes, but is too anxious to focus on the words. She looks up only when she hears the bell of the door chime.

 _Robin Hood_

The source of Regina's anxiety. He had called her last night and asked Regina to have lunch with him today. She was not normally this anxious when they spent time together. In fact, in the years since their break up, they had developed a sort of friendship. However, normally when they spent time together, it was in a group setting. Even when it wasn't, the situation usually arose coincidentally; like they happened to be at the grocery store at the same time last month and chatted for over an hour.

But today was different. Robin asked her here, alone, for a specific purpose. She didn't know what that purpose was yet, but she had a feeling she wouldn't like it.

"Regina!" He greeted her warmly as he sat down across from her.

"Robin" She tried to match his warmth but she is sure she failed due to her suspicions about the lunch.

She put away her paper and Ruby came and took their orders.

"How have you been?" He begins once the waitress leaves.

"I'm doing very well, thank you. How are you? How are Roland and Regan?"

"I'm good. The children are doing well. Roland is starting to act jealous that he isn't getting all the attention anymore but Zelena has set aside time so we can spend a few hours a week with just him." Robin explains.

"I'm glad to hear it." Regina says, and for the most part she means it. Regina is happy that her sister seems to have made so much progress toward the side of good. A small part of her is still a little resentful that she seems to have taken Regina's happy ending without putting in nearly as much effort has Regina herself has.

"Will we be seeing you and Emma at the Costume Party?" Robin inquires

"How did you know I was going with Emma?" She asks, slightly taken aback.

"Oh" Robin flounders, "I just assumed. I hardly ever see one of you without the other anymore."

"Hmm" Regina thinks about Robin's statement and decides that it is pretty accurate. She and Emma do spend nearly all their free time together, and she doesn't see Robin that often. "It is nice to finally have good friends in my life."

"Yes…friends" Robin says while he contemplates. He was sure that Emma and Regina were more than _friends_ but Regina can be very hard to read. Now, he isn't sure if they are hiding their relationship, or if they both are just really that oblivious to the fact that they are practically dating. He had almost hoped they were dating so that his news today might go over better.

Before much more can be said their food arrives and they start eating. After several minutes of near silence, Regina finally breaks down and asks why Robin had asked her to lunch.

"Well…I have news." He starts tentatively.

"And what is this big news?" Regina inquires when it doesn't seem like Robin will go on.

Robin takes a deep breathe and then blurts out "I'm going to ask Zelena to marry me."

Regina is stunned into silence. She really shouldn't be shocked. Robin and Zelena had been openly dating for about a year now. They had been acting as a family for even longer than that. She shouldn't be shocked…but she is. Perhaps it's the way she is finding out that is so strange. She usually got news of this sort through the grape vine, or from Zelena herself when she was in a nasty mood.

She isn't exactly upset by the news. Slightly resentful maybe, but she truly does not want Robin Hood anymore. She may have loved him once upon a time, but she doesn't think she was ever _in_ love with him. Emma had helped her see the difference after the break-up.

"After everything…I didn't want you to find out from other people." He adds quickly

"Congratulations." She manages to choke out.

"Well there no need for congratulations yet. I haven't even asked her. She might not say yes."

"She will." Regina replies confidently

Robin smiles at her. At one time she may have considered it charming but now she can't stomach it. "I wanted to get your blessing." He finally tells her.

"You really don't need my blessing." She replies, a little shocked he would ask. She really hopes there are no more surprises in store for her today.

"Still, I want it. It would mean a lot to me considering you and I have been through a lot." He says "Plus, Zelena has no other family I can ask."

"I suppose you have my blessing then." She says and then adds mentally " _Not that you ever thought to ask for it before. Like when you started DATING my SISTER."_

"Thank you." He says.

Mercifully they drop the subject after that and continue eating. Robin asks her about Henry and the Charmings until it is time to leave. After they exit the diner, Robin pulls her into a quick hug goodbye.

"Thank you again, Regina." He says as he pulls away.

Regina simply gives him a tight smile and walks in the opposite direction.

Emma hates waiting. She likes to be on the move. On the go. On the offensive.

That's why Emma hates the doctors. She isn't afraid of needles or anything. In fact the Optometrist (who she was currently waiting for) doesn't even use them. She simply hates how much doctors make you wait around. You had to wait in the waiting room until you were called. Then wait in the exam room until they run their tests. Then wait for the doctor to come in and read the results. It was exhausting and boring at the same time.

While waiting her mind wanders to Regina. She wonders how her lunch with Robin is going. She hopes he's not trying to get back together or anything. She had secretly always disliked Robin. She always thought he was kind of smarmy and didn't treat Regina right. She never expressed these feelings, but she could never understand what Regina saw in him. She supposes Regina has had the same thought about Hook though.

"Hello, Emma" Emma was startled out of her thoughts when the doctor arrived in her room.

"Hello Dr. Song."

"Please, call me Derek." He says.

Dr. Song could not be much older than Emma herself, and he had been her Eye Doctor since coming to Storybrooke, and yet calling him by his first name seemed strangely informal. She didn't want to be rude though so she nodded her head in acknowledgement.

"Well Emma, your results look good." He says as he takes out a small flashlight and shines it in her eyes. "Nothing seems to have changed. I should be able to write you a prescription for more contacts."

Emma had started to wear her glasses instead of her contacts after the Dark Curse broke. At first she was just too upset to deal with putting them in, but then she found that she liked the normalcy of wearing glasses.

She came here today because she wanted contacts to wear to the costume party. It's not like Odette wore thick black frames in the cartoon.

"Is there anything else I can help you with today? Any concerns you're having?" He asks her as he makes notes in the computer.

"No, just the contacts." She responds, eager to finally leave the office.

"So, I couldn't help but hear that you were going to the costume party as the Swan Princess." He states casually as he finishes up with the paper work for the visit.

"Yeah? Snow really can't keep a secret I guess." Emma responds.

"Well, I happen to know that the Prince in the movie's name is Derek."

"Is that so..." She has a feeling she knows where he is directing this conversation.

"Yes it is. And I know I'm not a real prince, but I was wondering if you'd let me take you to the Halloween party anyway." He implores.

" I…I don't think so." She is starting to feel uncomfortable but she has to admit that it is a little flattering to be asked out even if she has no desire to date.

If she is being honest, a part of the reason she wanted contacts again was because she was afraid that glasses were starting to make her look old. All the fighting and stress of the last few years has really taken a toll on her. She has started noticing wrinkles that weren't there before. She's too young for that! She was never very vain but it's hard not to care what you look like when you're surrounded by beautiful people. Her own mother looks younger than her, and is practically glowing now that she is pregnant! Ruby, her god-mother, struts around in almost no clothing. And Emma can't even begin to think about how good Regina looks. The other woman looks just as good as the day they met…possibly better now that she smiles more and has let her hair grow out. And she's practically her grandmother! (Though both of them hate to think about that fact.)

"Very well." Derek responds as he hands her the forms. "I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to ask since you are here today, but I'm sure a beautiful woman like you already has plans."

" I do…Sorry." She hopes she wasn't leading him on in any way. She can't imagine she was though. She has evidently been putting off strong "no sex" vibes for a while now.

The thought now of sex makes her reconsider his offer for just a moment. _I could change my plans to go with him. I'm sure Regina would understand._ The thought immediately makes her feel guilty…and a little bit dirty. She feels as if she was thinking of…cheating on Regina. _Why do I feel that way? We're not dating_.

"Maybe another time then." He says and sees her to the door.

"Maybe." Comes the auto response as she leaves. She immediately feels extremely guilty again. _What is happening? Maybe I just feel guilty that I am leading him on with no intention of dating him_. She tries to convince herself of this all the way back to the Sheriff's station.

When Emma arrives at the station her father immediately greets her.

"Hey Emma. Glad you're here!" He says.

"You're just glad because that means you can finally leave." She says knowingly

"You got me." He responds with a chuckle "You have a visitor by the way."

She follows his gesture to her office and sees a certain brunette lounging regally in her desk chair.

"Thanks." She calls to him as he leaves the building.

"Miss Swan." Regina says coolly. The situation is reminiscent of a time before the curse broke.

"Madam Mayor." Emma mocks her tone.

But Emma can't keep a straight face for very long and smiles at her as she shoos the other woman out of her chair. Regina rolls her eyes but gets up from the chair and lets the blonde sit without further comment. She chooses to lean her back against the desk next to Emma. So close that their knees and practically touching.

"How was your appointment dear?" Regina asks

"No, no. You go first. How was your lunch?" Emma asks curiously.

Regina sighs. "He told me he is going to ask Zelena to marry him." She says unemotionally, as if it meant nothing. Emma wasn't buying the act though.

"Wait, seriously! What an asshole!" Emma shouts. She knows logically that he didn't do anything terrible, but she can't imagine what Regina must have had to go through during that lunch.

"Emma, calm down." Regina commands. She is a bit startled by the blonde's harsh reaction.

"Sorry…but seriously?!" Emma says forcing herself back into the moment. "Why did he feel the need to tell you over lunch?"

"Well…he actually asked me for my blessing since she has no other family." Regina explains.

Emma and Regina lock eyes for a moment. There is a very pregnant pause and then suddenly they are both cracking up. Though they don't find the situation that funny, they can't seem to stop laughing.

"Seriously?!" Emma asks again.

"Yes." Regina confirms

"I'm guessing you gave it to him." Emma says still laughing "The blessing, I mean."

"What else was I supposed to do? Say no you can not marry the mother of your child who you have been dating for the last year?" Regina asks rhetorically.

"The Evil Queen would have." Emma says thoughtfully, after calming down from their fit.

"Lucky for everyone then that she did not make an appearance."

"Not luck." Emma says dismissively. "Your hard work and will power."

Regina smiles and gives Emma's hand a squeeze. A spark runs through both of them at the contact but they pull away and dismiss it as simply static electricity.

Even though Emma has always been one of her biggest supporters in her fight for good, it still pleasantly surprises Regina when the younger woman compliments her efforts. It has admittedly been much easier to control her emotions recently. She had been working with Doctor Hopper to learn how to relinquish control.

"So, tell me about your day? Am I right to assume you aren't going blind any time soon?" She changes the subject.

"Nope, same as always." Emma replies." Although…"

"Yes?"

"Dr. Song asked me to go to the Halloween party with him." She says offhandedly.

"Oh…that should be fun….He is handsome for someone with such a big nose….and he does have a good job. Although I can't imagine he get's a lot of work in a small town like-"

Emma stared at the rambling woman curiously. _Did she sound jealous_?

"I turned him down." Emma finally interrupted.

"Oh." Regina says again. Then pauses. "Why?"

Emma shrugged her shoulders. "I'm already going with you and Henry."

Regina tried to fight the pleased smiled threatening to overcome her face but knows she fails miserably. It has always been hard to control her emotions around the younger woman.

"As much as I appreciate that dear, you are allowed to go on a date if you wish too. I know you must have…needs that aren't being met." She adds with a smirk.

"Are you offering to help with those needs?" Emma asks and stands up to face the woman. Invading her personal space.

The air is heavy with tension…but also something else. The air is crackling with a strange magical energy. Both the women are, of course, too distracted to notice it.

"You couldn't handle my help." Regina practically whispers this into Emma ear. That's how close they are.

Emma is momentarily brain dead from this comment. By the time it kick-starts again, Regina's smirk is twice as big.

" I don't know you've been out of practice nearly as long as I have." Emma finally responds.

Regina gives a sultry laugh and turns her back to Emma. She makes her way to leave but at the door she turns and pins Emma with her eyes.

"It's like riding a bike Miss Swan. You never forget." And with those final words she exits.

Emma shakes her head, trying to get dispel the heat rising to her cheeks.


	4. Wednesday Family Nights

Things are finally happening! Enjoy!

Henry runs to the door when he hears the knock. He knows who it is. He can tell by the knock. Even if he hadn't already been expecting his blonde mother to come by for their weekly dinner, he would know it was her just by the knock. They _do_ have a doorbell, but he doesn't think she's ever used it.

Wednesdays are also a family dinner night. However, this dinner occurs without the Charmings. Emma had started coming over on Wednesday nights even before Regina began to attend Sunday dinners.

They said Wednesday dinners were for him, so that he could spend more time with both of them. He knows that was only part of it though. They needed each other just as much as he needed them. These dinners just gave them an excuse to hang out. Although he has come to notice that they don't make excuses to do that anymore.

"Hey Kid." Emma says as she enters the house.

"Hey Mom. What's that?" He eyes the cake container she is currently holding in her hand.

"I brought dessert." She states and gives him the container so that she can take off her coat and shoes.

"You made this?" He asks, now even more skeptical of the containers contents.

"I do know how to bake some things!" She exclaims, slightly offended by this lack of trust in her cooking skills.

"Leave you're mother alone Henry." Regina says, appearing in the doorway. "I'm sure it came from a box mix and should therefore be edible."

"Hey, _I've_ never poisoned someone with my desserts." Emma reminds her, earning a well-deserved glare from the woman.

"Technically she cursed me, not poisoned." Henry points out with a smirk.

"Semantics…but for the record, I haven't done that either." Emma says with a chuckle.

"While I love to hear you two joke about the scariest moment of my life, I think we should sit down before dinner gets cold." Regina says dryly. There is no malice in her voice though. In a weird way she _is_ happy the two of them can joke about that horrible day now. She personally knows she will never be able to, but it's nice to know that they don't hold a grudge against her.

As soon as they finish dessert (which most certainty was from a box mix), Henry excuses himself. With the excuse of needing to work on his costume, he quickly goes up to his room. His costume is only partially the reason he escapes though. He loves his mothers, and as lame as it might sound, he thinks they are probably his best friends. However, that doesn't mean they can't annoy him. Like when they gang up on him. But especially when they flirt in front of him. Gross. He isn't a child anymore. He understands all the innuendos, and it's frankly a little disturbing. He wishes the two of them would either just get married or stop!

Down in the kitchen, Regina is beginning to wash the dishes as Emma wipes down the table. This is their routine.

Emma notes that everything in her life seems to have become very routine. While this makes her happy, it also makes her a bit anxious. She is always waiting for the other shoe to drop… for the next villain to show up.

Something is due to happen. She doesn't know if it will be good or bad, but she knows that she has never been allowed to live this calmly for this long.

With the thoughts of surprises in the back of Emma's mind, maybe her next actions make a little more sense.

When she enters the kitchen she sees that Regina is at the sink facing away from her.

Suddenly she is struck with an idea to come up behinds the brunette and try to scare her. Anyone else would have seen the flaws in a plan of trying to scare a formally evil witch. Not Emma Swan though.

Emma excitedly sneaks up behind and shouts "BOO!" as she grabs the shorter woman's shoulders.

Just as her hands make contact with skin a few things happen simultaneously.

Regina shouts

All the power in the house flickers

The light blubs hanging over the sink shatter and the pieces rain down onto the two women.

"Miss Swan!" An angry Regina flips around to face her.

"Oh shit, sorry. What the hell just happened?!" Emma frantically demands.

Before Regina can answer they hear Henry shouting down to ask if they're okay.

"Yeah. You?" Emma shouts back, while avoiding Regina's death glare.

Once they hear the responding "yeah" she knows she has to face the other woman.

"What did you do?!" Regina begins.

"Me? I didn't do this!" Emma insists.

"It was clearly magical, and I did not do that, so it has to have been you!"

Emma wants to give an angry reply. She wants to shout about how she has learned to control her magic. How, after being the dark one, she may even have better knowledge on the subject than Regina does.

Yet, just as the words are coming out of her mouth, she notices a nasty gash across Regina's forearm.

"That looks bad." Emma says grabbing Regina's arm.

Regina jerks back in surprise. "Did you not just learn that you shouldn't grab me by surprise?"

"Sorry." Emma holds her hands up in surrender. "You can heal that right?"

"Yes, but I think there might be some glass pieces in the cut. I will have to get them out and clean the wound before I can heal it." Regina answers while inspecting her arm.

"Okay, lets go to the bathroom. That's where you keep the first aid kit right?"

"I don't need your help." Regina snaps back. She is vaguely curious about when exactly the blonde became so familiar with her house.

Emma doesn't think she's seen her friend look this pissed at her in a long time. She feels terrible, even though she _knows_ that she didn't cause the magic…at least by herself. "With all due respect, I think you do. You're right handed. Are you going to really try and pick the glass out with your left hand?"

"I'm sure I'd be fine."

"Stubborn." Emma says. _But you know what? So am I_. So she starts her way toward the bathroom, knowing Regina will eventually follow.

She doesn't disappoint.

"I can really deal with this myself." Regina says as she enters the bathroom. She's not completely comfortable with letting other people take care of her.

"Oh, shut it." Emma says exhausted by this conversation already. "Hop up and I'll take a look."

"I do not hop." Regina insists as she gets up onto the sink's counter.

Emma smiles at her. She can't help but think that the move Regina just made to sit looked an awful lot like a hop to her.

"Should I use tweezers to get the pieces out?" Emma says and slowly takes Regina's arm into her hands.

"Preferably not unless you have to."

Emma nods and begins the extraction.

Regina flinches as Emma takes out the first piece. It was a fairly big one and no tweezers were needed. Nonetheless, Emma sees at least one additional smaller piece that will require the tool to be used.

This time Regina hisses as the piece is carefully extracted.

"Sorry." Emma says instinctually

"Yes, well this is your fault." Regina mumbles.

Emma puts down the tweezers and takes a breath. She actively chooses to ignore the other woman's comments.

"If neither of us did magic intentionally, then what happened?" Emma asks.

Regina sighs…because she knows she's defeated. "It must have been both of us."

"Both of us?" Emma asks as she gets a washcloth to clean the wound.

"Yes, it happened when you touched me." Regina explains. As she does she looks down at the hand that is currently holding her arm. "Just like with Jefferson's hat. Our magic combined even though we didn't mean for it to."

"Yeah but with the hat at least one of us was trying to do magic at the time." Emma reminds her.

"Yes…it is peculiar. But not impossible." Regina admits. What she doesn't say is that it's only possible in cases where the two magic users share a strong connection. Like blood…or true love.

"I guess we'll just have to be careful then." Emma says. "It could have been a lot worse."

"Yes, yes it could have." Regina acknowledges.

"At least I was able to scare you." Emma says as she dabs disinfectant across the arm.

"You did not scare me." Regina argues.

"I so did! You shouted." Emma laughs and lets go of the arm.

"You can not scare an Evil Queen." Regina dismisses. "You merely startled me."

"Semantics." Emma says for the second time that night. Henry is clearly this woman's son.

"Admit that I totally scared Her Majesty." Emma demands.

"Never!" Regina shouts with a playful yet determined glint in her eye.

"Admit it." Emma repeats and hits Regina lightly with the dirty washcloth.

"Emma!" Regina shouts. But Emma knows Regina isn't _that_ upset because she still called her by her first name.

Emma is laughing now and hits Regina's leg again with the towel.

Regina grabs Emma's wrist to stop her from doing it again.

Just as she does though, the lights in the bathroom explode and the pieces come down on them.

Emma reacts a bit faster this time and pulls Regina down from the counter. Removing her from direct line of harm of the shattering glass.

Unfortunately, Regina wasn't expecting to be pulled off the counter and stumbles. Toppling over, she knocks herself and Emma to the ground.

They land with an "Umph" from Emma. The blonde had taken the worst of the fall. She landed almost directly on her back, with the other woman landing hard on her chest.

For a moment they just lay there because neither of them can move.

Finally Regina tries removing herself from direct contact with the other woman's chest and attempts to push herself up on her hands.

The moment she does she stops and looks down at the other woman. Emma's blonde hair is splayed out in all directions. Her chest is heaving. Her glasses are slightly skewed. Regina thinks she's never seen anyone more beautiful beneath her. But what truly stops Regina moving away is the look in Emma's eyes. Emma is looking at her with…adoration. It's chilling…and flattering…and she can't seem to look away.

That is until she looks at her lips. She is overcome with the overwhelming desire to kiss the other women. She's had such desires before, but never to this intensity. Never when they'd been in such an intimate position. She wants to, almost does too, but she stops herself. She knows this is not a bridge they could uncross. She isn't sure that it's a bridge Emma is ready to cross…even if she's beginning to realize that she herself is.

Emma, for her part, was having similar trouble looking away. Regina is hanging over her. Her hair is falling slightly in her face. Emma wants to reach up and brush it behind her ear, but can't seem to make any of her motor skills work at the moment. Not when Regina's cleavage is practically in her face. _God, she's gorgeous_. Emma had always thought so but for once, it's not thought in an envious way. Now, she admires it…or more than admires it.

Emma notices when Regina's gaze falls to her lips _. Is she going to kiss me?!_ She is both terrified and excited by the prospect _. Do I want her to?_ Emma hesitates with this question because for all their flirting, she has never really thought it would get to this point. She never really thought that Regina could want more from her. The brunette above her had always seemed so reluctant to even give her friendship to her.

She sees Regina move in slightly and all Emma can think is _This is it!_ And she knows that yes, she does want this kiss to happen.

To her dismay, this is exactly when Regina decides to pull back and start to remove herself from Emma.

Emma feels a sting of rejection as Regina gets up. But Regina gives her a small smile.

"Well, so much for being careful." She says looking around at the mess of glass in the bathroom. She is actually just avoiding looking at Emma, who is slowly getting up from the floor. "Are you okay?" She asks once she realizes how much the blonde is struggling to get up.

"Yeah." Emma says in a horse voice. "I should be fine."

"Good." Regina says almost awkwardly. "I should clean this up and head to bed."

Emma takes the hint gratefully. She is feeling very out of place at the moment. "Yeah I probably should go."

And with that Emma leaves a very conflicted and still bleeding Regina alone in the bathroom.

 _Good going Regina!_ She chastises herself. _You let yourself get caught up in the moment!_ _Emma clearly isn't ready yet._ But then she thinks back to the moment. It really did seem like Emma wanted to kiss her too. Maybe there is hope. _Great now you sound like a Charming_.

Emma practically runs to the car in her haste to leave the mansion _. Stupid_. _Stupid. She was never going to kiss you. You just wanted her to so you made yourself think it was a possibility._ Emma thoroughly convinces herself that she had blown the whole moment out of proportion by the time she gets home.

Neither of the women sleeps well that night.


	5. Thursday Run-Ins

Snow White is currently pinning fabric to sew a beautiful gown for her daughter. She has never felt so domestic in her life. Unfortunately her daughter is a grown woman, and even after 5 years, Snow still has trouble communicating with her sometimes. Her daughter has been worrying her this evening. Emma had come by a little while after dinner so that Snow could turn Emma's white gown into an Odette Halloween costume. Emma has been pleasant and grateful, but something seems off. She has seemed distracted.

"Emma, what's bothering you? She finally asks.

"Nothing." Emma says. It's an auto-response. Snow is sure she didn't really even register the question.

"It's not nothing." Snow insists in a firmer voice.

The voice seems to break through. Emma finally looks at her mom and sighs. "I'm okay." She responds. "Really. I just have a lot on my mind today." She adds when she sees the skeptical look on her mothers face.

"Anything you want to talk about." Snow tries to sound casual about it, and goes back to cutting the fabric.

"No it's nothing in particular." Emma says. She sees that her mother is going to argue with her about it so she cuts her off before she gets the chance. "I'm going to use the bathroom." As she gets up she groans. The fall to her back yesterday had her aching still. Her mother looks even more concerned now but she just brushes past her on her way to the bathroom.

Snow watches her daughter get up and leave the room. She's contemplating ways to make Emma open up to her when she hears a knock on the door.

"Hey Grandma!" She hears when she opens it up.

"Hello Henry…Hello Regina." She sees that her former step-mother is behind her son on the front porch.

"Snow." Regina greets with a nod of her head.

"Come in, come in." She ushers them into the house. "What can I do for you?"

"Grandpa said he had a book I could borrow." Henry explains.

"Oh yes, he should be with Neal upstairs." She directs the boy.

"Cool. Thanks." He says and bounds up the stairs.

Meanwhile, Emma Swan is plastered to the bathroom door. She can't make out what everyone is saying in the hall, but she can definitely tell who their current guests are. _What is Regina doing here_?

The thought of Regina sends nervous butterflies in her stomach…but not in an entirely unpleasant way. It's like facing your crush and being worried that you'll embarrass yourself…which Emma realizes is kind of (more like exactly) what is happening.

Since the moment they shared last night, Emma hasn't been able to stop thinking about the other woman. Literally. She even dreamt of her. Dreams that may be considered inappropriate for a younger audience. All of these thoughts feel so sudden, but the emotions behind them run deep enough for Emma to know that they had been there for a very long time.

She seriously contemplates staying in the bathroom until they leave. The problem is that she doesn't know why they are here or how long they will stay. Not to mention the fact that if she stays in here much longer, her mom will surely come to see if she's okay. She takes a deep breath and opens the door.

Unfortunately for her, the bathroom is in the front hall and she has no other time to collect herself before she is face to face with the two brunettes.

"Emma." Regina says with slight surprise.

"Hey." She says shyly.

Then there is an awful moment of awkward silence. Emma desperately wants to break it but she just doesn't know how to talk to Regina now that she's feeling things she hadn't before. _That's not true._ Emma corrects herself. _You were feeling them before, you were just unaware of them and how strong they were._ Now, she can barely make eye contact!

Emma has enough presence of mind to question why Regina and Snow didn't just resume the conversation they were having before Emma entered, but her brain can't focus on too many things at once.

After a truly uncomfortable stretch of time Regina finally breaks the silence.

"Well, we should be going. Tell Henry I'll be warming up the car."

"Okay. Bye Regina." Snow responds.

"Yes, I will see you tomorrow Snow." And with that Regina walks out the door without a second glance at Emma.

The door shuts with a soft click.

"Well…I guess we know what's troubling you today." Snow says and gives Emma a questioning look.

"Fix it!" They hear Henry, on the top of the stairs.

The two women turn to look at him as he descends.

"What a lovely greeting from my only child. " Emma says sarcastically.

"Fix it." He repeats.

"What are you even talking about kid?" Emma isn't giving up anything willingly.

"Don't play that game with me Emma. Last night there was lights flickering, and shouting, and then you seemed to be leaving in a big hurry and didn't say goodbye to me. All day mom's been all morose and now you guys can barley be in the same room together." The boy elaborates.

"She's been morose?" Emma asks

"Sounds like someone else I know." Snow adds quietly.

Before Emma can remark, Henry starts talking again. "I don't care what you did. Just fix it."

"Why do you think _I_ did something!?" She asks bitterly

He simply gives her a look that lets her know she is clearly missing the point.

"I have to go. I'll see you on Saturday." He says

"Yeah, Yeah." She brushes off.

She might have stayed a bit upset at him for yelling at her but he comes over and gives her and Snow a quick hug before he leaves and suddenly Emma can't hold any anger.

As soon as the door shuts Snow rounds on Emma. "So you and Regina had a fight." she states.

"No, we didn't." Emma says agitatedly. She ignores her mother's look and goes back to sitting on the couch in the living room where they had been. Her mother follows her but chooses to stand in front of her. Subconsciously putting herself in a position of dominance.

"Henry said there was shouting and lights flickering."

"Yeah, our magic got a little out of control, but it's fine now."

"Our magic? As in both of yours?"

"Yes, our combined magic. But really it's fine."

"If it's fine then what's bothering you?"

"Nothing is bothering me."

"Emma."

"What? Seriously."

"If you didn't have a fight last night then why was it so awkward between you and Regina just now?"

"Why are you seeing Regina tomorrow?"

"Stop deflecting Emma. Why won't you just tell me why you are upset!?"

"Because I'm not upset!"

"Clearly something happened!"

"Fine! You really want to know? Regina and I had a moment last night and now I think I'm in love with her. I don't even know if she likes me at all and I don't know how to talk to her now!"

After the explosion there is a strange silence hanging in the air. Emma really did not want to tell all that to her mother (Regina's former worst enemy). She wasn't even sure she was falling in love until the words spilled out of her mouth.

Emma puts her head in her hands. She is starting to form a massive stress headache. She also can't watch the shocked expression that is frozen on her mother's face anymore. She feels a dip in the couch and then a slim arm wrapping around Emma's back. One of Snow's arms is wrapped protectively around her while the other rubs Emma's arm.

Emma finds immense comfort in the gesture. More than she thought she ever would. It gives her enough courage to eventually lower her hands from her face and look at the woman next to her.

Snow gives her a small smile. "She does."

"Does what?" Emma asks in a voice that's thick with unshed tears.

"She does like you." Snow elaborates.

Emma simply stares at her mother in wonder. "How do you know?"

"Because I have eyes." Snow says with a chuckle. "Because when you two are together she looks almost like the Regina I first met."

Emma's mind can't comprehend a world where Regina might actually love her too. She is only just getting use to a world where _she's_ in love. Not to mention a world where Snow isn't freaking out about these revelations.

"And you're okay with that?" Emma questions. She is too emotionally drained too even try and keep the insecurity out of her voice.

"Oh sweetie, of course." She assures her broken-down daughter. "I would never tell you who you are allowed to love."

Emma leans into her mother now for support. Snow hold her more fully now as they lay back on the couch.

"I…I just don't know what to do now." Emma admits after several minutes.

"I think the only thing to do is to tell her how you feel." Snow says gently.

"You make that sound so easy." Emma mumbles. "Regina's like the most difficult person I've ever met."

"Yes, yes she is. And yet…you love her." Despite suspecting this for a while now, Snow still struggled to say the words out loud.

Emma laughs at her mother's uncomfortable expression. "That's closer to the reaction I was expecting."

"No matter how much time I've spent thinking about it, it's still a strange concept for me." Her mother admits.

"You knew? How? I only just realized?" Emma says genuinely surprised.

This time it's Snow's turn to laugh. "I didn't know…but we've suspected. When I was still Mary Margaret, Ruby and I use to joke about how you two were a little obsessed with each other. After the curse broke, everything was different of course. Then you sacrificed yourself for her and…I don't know, but those thoughts started to appear again. Now you two practically at like a married couple. But you were friends who shared a child, so I didn't want to assume anything more was happening."

Emma sat in stunned silence. She hadn't even admitted to herself that she was in love until about 5 minutes ago. Now, she is coming to see that her feelings have clearly gone back further then she ever imagined.

"Well dam. My life just got more complicated."


	6. Friday's Chats

This is the longest fic I've written so far and I think I'm loosing some steam. I hope it doesn't show!

Regina stared uncomfortably at the woman in front of her. Snow White. Her former enemy turned family was currently sitting across from her desk.

Snow had asked for a meeting with her last night when Regina had come over to her house. She came today seeking help from the older woman. Snow apparently wanted to scare everyone at her Halloween Party. Including her husband and children. She couldn't think of anything good enough though so she sought out Regina for help. _Because who was scarier than the Evil Queen?_ Regina didn't know whether to be offended or amused that Snow would ask for her help with such a task.

In the end she chose amused and they had just spent the last hour discussing possible pranks they could pull. Most of Regina's ideas involved magic, which Snow was skeptical about at first. But in the end, she admitted they were definitely more creative and ultimately scarier than her non-magical ones.

Now that they had discussed all that they needed to, an uncomfortable silence had descended over the room. It didn't last very long, but it was long enough to make both women start to over think what they should say next.

"I should probably go now. I have a lot to do before tomorrow to get ready." Snow finally says.

"Yes." Regina responds. She is thankful that the other woman is leaving. It had been a pleasant meeting, but she didn't want to push their newfound companionship too far. "It seems I have a lot to do now as well." She says referring to their previous discussion.

Snow smiles and attempts to get up from her chair. However, in her current state of pregnancy, this is no easy task. Regina is at her side in a flash and is helping her up from the low chair. Snow smiles even wider at the gesture and thanks Regina.

Snow's coat is on, her purse is in hand, and she's about to exit when she stops. She has wanted to say something since she got to Regina's office and hasn't. She's always slightly afraid of upsetting the other woman and didn't know how her question would be received. The act of kindness that Regina just showed her though has given her some courage.

She walks back over to the desk and leans her hands on the chair's back. Regina gives her a questioning look.

"Regina, are you okay?" She asks genuinely concerned. Regina, like Emma yesterday, has seemed very reserved today. Although Snow now knows the probable cause, she still wants to try and help in any way she can. She doesn't think Regina will let her help though. Frankly, she's still a little shocked that she was able to help Emma. She is proud that her daughter seemed much happier (if not more anxious) when she left yesterday than when she arrived though.

"Of course. Why?" Regina responds.

Snow thought for a moment about how to proceed without giving too much of what she knows away. "You seem a little off today and Henry mentioned that you and Emma had a fight."

"We didn't have a fight...and even if we did, shouldn't you be concerned about your daughter's well-being, not mine?"

"I already talked to Emma." Snow assures her. "But I care about your well-being too."

Regina wonders how much Emma told her. Certainly not exactly what happened if Snow was here asking about how she is doing. "I'm not about to go all Evil Queen again if that's your concern."

"It wasn't."

"I'm fine dear. Thanks for your concern." Regina says dismissively. She is actually grateful for Snow's concern, but she doesn't want to be having this particular conversation right now.

Snow turns back toward the door again, but she doesn't make it very far before she hears Regina call her name.

"How _is_ Emma?" Regina asks in an almost shy voice.

Snow smiles. As strange as the situation is, she can't help but be happy that her daughter has someone in her life that cares about her so deeply.

"I think you should probably ask her yourself." Snow paused trying to formulate the right words. "Emma needs to hear that people care about her. After everything that has happened…you know as well as I do that she doesn't think she deserves love." Snow explains. They both know that Snow is not only referencing Emma's foster system upbringing, but also her deeds as the dark one.

 _Why is she telling me this?_ Regina wondered. _What had Emma told her about that night if Snow is basically asking her to share her feelings with her daughter_? Then a thought occurs to Regina that hadn't before. _Does Emma think I rejected her that night?_

"Well then, I guess we'll have to change that." Regina says with sincerity.

Snow smiled once more. She may have a complicated relationship with Regina, but their strongest connection is the people they love.

"I will see you both tomorrow then." Snow says as she departs.

Regina watches her go, and wondered if Snow could possibly realize the depth of her feelings. _Am I really that obvious?_


	7. Saturday Party Day (Part 1)

The day of the big party has finally arrived! Saturday will be split up into two parts since so much will be happening!

Emma is currently staring out the windshield of her bug. She had arrived at Mifflin Street over five minutes ago but still has not moved to get out of the car. She was more nervous than she felt she had any right to be. This morning she had begun to wonder if Regina even still expected to go to the party together. Before those worries could escalate too much though, she had gotten a text from the other woman asking what time they would be leaving. This had calmed her down enough to get through the workday. However now that she was in front of the house all those unnamed worries began to surface.

Emma steeled her resolve. If worse came to worse, at least Henry would be there. She finally begins to make her way up the path. Before Emma even makes it past the front pillars, Regina pulls open the door to greet her.

Regina had seen the yellow monstrosity pull up on the street a few minutes ago and has been waiting (rather impatiently) for the blonde to finally get out. She had been dying to talk to Emma ever since her conversation with Snow the day before. She wasn't sure what she even wanted to say though, or what excuse she would have for seeing her, so she forced herself to wait until now.

Anyhow, now that the woman is in front of her, she can barley think of anything to say at all. The normally tough and sexy Sheriff has been replaced by a soft and elegant Princess. The woman looks too beautiful for words.

Still, it takes quite a lot to actually render the mayor speechless so she still manages to find at least _something_ to say in that moment. "Don't you look like a Princess."

The words are said jokingly but Emma is too captivated by the adoration in the chocolate eyes to believe that it's in any way an insult.

"That was the idea." Emma says. Then she pointedly looks down at Regina's outfit.

The older woman certainty looks…older. Her long hair is now completely white. This is a stark contrast to the black cloak that covers her entire body. Her face also looks aged. She still looks like Regina…just with a few more wrinkles. Her nails are almost grotesquely long and painted black as well. Something else seems different as well…

"I see what you're doing here…clever." Emma compliments. Regina is clearly trying to mimic the old witch that the Queen in the cartoon turns into.

"I thought so." Regina looks up at her and smirks. _Looks up?_ Oh that's what's different. Regina is normally Emma's height with her ridiculous heels on. The other woman must have decided to forgo them in respect to her costume.

"How did you…" Emma asks while pointing to the other woman's face and steps through the doorway.

"Magic." Regina answers. "I used a spell to temporarily make me look 20 years older."

 _20 years! Damm. I guess I have something to look forward to._ "That's just not fair." Emma mutters.

"Not fair that I used magic in my costume? You realize you could have also right?"

"No." Emma corrects her, slightly embarrassed. "Not fair that you're still going to look so good in twenty years." When she sees Regina's eyes widen at the admission she continues speaking. "I'm sure I'll look like crap. I'm really starting to feel old lately."

"I highly doubt that." She hears Regina say just as Henry comes down to greet her.

"Hey Mom! Happy Halloween!" He says enthusiastically.

"Hey kid." She responds. "You do realize Halloween is tomorrow right?"

"Yeah I know but I'm getting in the spirit." He explains and eyes her outfit. "You look like a real princess."

"Funny. That's what your mom said." She chuckles. "Who are you exactly?"

"I'm Walt Disney." He states _. Ah, that explains the fake mustache and suit._ It makes sense too, they were both authors to a bunch of crazy fairy tale people.

"You guys were both very clever with you outfits." Emma says.

"Thanks. Yeah, doesn't mom look awesome?" He implores. He is watching their body language carefully. He's not sure he believes that they didn't actually have a fight. He wants to make sure Emma has fixed whatever happened between them.

"Very awesome." She agrees. Regina fights the urge to blush at the smile Emma bestows upon her with the compliment. "I think we should get going. My mom's not going to be happy if her own daughter shows up an hour late."

Henry laughs, satisfied by her response, and pushes his mothers out the door.

Regina Mills is currently sitting on a very lumpy couch. Normally such an inconvenience would dampen her mood…but not tonight. Tonight she's too distracted to really notice any physical discomfort. She's currently watching a certain blonde across the room. Emma had left her to get drinks and is now currently caught in a conversation with Rumple (Who is dressed like the prince from Beauty and the Beast). People are still showing up, but the room is crowded enough already that she can't hear the two speaking. Emma looks slightly annoyed though.

Regina is thinking about going over there to save her when someone sits down next to her and starts speaking.

"Oh my, don't you look like an old hag." She hears her sister drawl.

Regina glares at her. "Says the woman who's face matches her boyfriend's tights." Because much to Regina's surprise, her sister has put green makeup on her face. It looks more like glittery Dark One skin than her former deep green mask though.

Zelena doesn't seem affected by the comment. "Fiancé, actually." She corrects, and waves her ring finger in Regina's face.

"Congratulations." Regina responds and swats the hand out of her face.

"Now now darling, no need to be jealous."

"I think out of the two of us, we know who has the problem with jealousy."

"What would I have to be jealous of anymore?"

Regina pauses a moment and takes a deep breath. Sometimes she gets along with her sister very well, other times…not so much. She doesn't want Zelena to goad her into a reaction though. Not tonight.

"Nothing dear. And I _am_ happy for you." She tries to sound as sincere as possible.

Zelena considers her sister's words. "You're not as much fun when you play nice."

"You should try it yourself more often." Regina recommends.

"Fine you want me to play nice? I will. In fact, let me give you some sisterly advice." Zelena says and leans in close. "Just kiss her already."

"Wh-who?" Regina stumbles, shocked not only by the statement but also from the intensity with which it was said.

"That blonde savior of yours. Who else?" She says and directs her eyes to said blonde.

"My relationship with Emma is none of your business." Regina responds now that she is back in control of her emotions.

"Perhaps not. But you look like a sad puppy over here. It's slightly disturbing to watch."

At that moment both Robin and Emma walk up to the couch.

"Hello Regina. Hello Emma." Robin greets them and puts a hand on Zelena's shoulder.

"Hey." Emma says quickly and averts her eyes from looking at him.

"Hello. I hear a congratulations are officially in order." Regina acknowledges.

"Thank you." He says. "I like your costume."

"Thanks." She is now a little embarrassed to not be looking like her younger self.

"Regina could you help me for a sec." Emma says and grabs her hand to pull up.

Suddenly the music playing from the stereo gets louder for a moment before it settles to normal volume again.

Zelena gives her sister a curious look. Regina rolls her eyes and excuses them both.

"What do you need?" Regina asks once they are in the next room.

"Nothing, I just didn't think you wanted to be talking to them much longer." Emma says and smirks. She stops to eat a chip, but still hasn't let go of Regina's hand.

"I appreciate that, but where were you five minutes ago when my sister sat down?"

"Hey, I was in need of my own saving. Rumple may not have magic anymore but that doesn't make him any less creepy. If anything he is even creeper."

"I agree. No one should have to talk to him unless Belle is also present." Regina comments.

Emma laughs and finally lets go of her hand when she sits at the dinning room table.

"These heels are killing my feet. I don't know how you wear them all the time." Emma remarks and rubs her ankle.

Regina sits across from her and laughs. "I suppose I'm just more talented than you."

They continue to banter for a bit. It feels…normal. None of the awkwardness from the last few days is appearing.

The one problem with sitting down at a party is that it means you've committed to one spot. You've literally trapped yourself. It doesn't take long before other party guests are locking them into long conversations.

Well not _them_ precisely. Mainly Emma. Although Regina has to admit that Emma is very good about including her in the conversations. However, uncharacteristically, Regina is content to sit back and listen. Especially to a particularly amusing chat between Emma and two very drunk dwarves about the benefits of indoor plumbing.

Even after the dwarves left to go use those benefits, Emma finds Regina still staring at her smiling.

"What? Why are you smiling like that?" She asks the brunette.

Regina shakes her head with the same amused expression. The very first thing she thinks to say is: _Because you're beautiful_. Thankfully she has enough self-control to hold back that statement. _But why is she holding back? Hadn't she decided that this is what she wanted?_

To be honest, Regina is afraid. It's become clear that Emma is at least slightly attracted to her, but attraction doesn't mean she would want a relationship. And even if Emma would be open to the possibility, is she ready for that?

Emma is giving her a questioning look still so she decides to test out the waters. See how she reacts to her compliments.

"You look exceptionally lovely tonight." Regina says sincerely.

Emma's eyes widen and she can feel herself blushing already. She's been doing that a lot around Regina lately. The compliment makes her heart expand, like a balloon filling up with air. She realizes now why, while Derek may have been flattering, he didn't make her feel special or beautiful. Nothing compared to Regina's eloquent statement. She only really needed Regina's compliments.

Emma doesn't know how to respond, but Regina is pleased with the reaction so she decides to bring a more teasing tone back to their banter.

"But…" Regina lets the word hang for a moment before finishing her thought. "I find myself missing your glasses. I think I've grown quite use to them on you."

Emma's heart almost couldn't handle the suspense of that statement coupled with the new revelation.

Thank goodness Emma is saved yet again. Her mother walks in at that moment and glares at Regina.

"I need to talk to you. Now!" She demands and stalks from the room.

Regina shakes her head at Snow's poor timing but plays along and stalks furiously out of the room as well.


	8. Saturday Party Day (Part 2)

The last chapter! I really hope you thought this was worth the read! Please comment and tell me what you thought or what I could improve!

Emma is still too flustered by the comments Regina made to worry about what her mother looked so angry about. Shouting eventually snaps her out of her daze. Everyone seems to be gathering in the living room. Someone must have lowered the music because all she can hear right now is the sound of two women yelling.

Not just two women. Snow and Regina. _This cannot be good_.

Emma forcefully pushes her way though the crowd and the yelling becomes more coherent.

"Oh you'd like to think I wouldn't harm them wouldn't you?" She hears Regina cackle.

"You wouldn't?!" Her mother shouts back.

Charming tries to protect his wife and push between them but Regina quickly flings up a magical barrier around her and Snow so no one can come any closer.

"Eat this and no harm will come." Regina says sickeningly sweetly, as she pulls a bright red apple out of her cloak and presents it to Snow.

"No!" Charming yells.

"Mom?!" Henry yells at the same time.

Emma is honestly too stunned to move. _What the hell is happening right now?!_ Could Regina really still be trying to poison her mother? They're friends? This made no sense.

As Emma is desperately trying to make sense of the situation she sees her mother reach for the apple.

"Good choice dear." Regina says once Snow has taken the fruit. Regina's face turns briefly away from Snow and she catches Emma's eye. It's only for a moment. A fleeting moment. But it's enough for Emma to become confused instead of angry.

She always knows when Regina's lying. And right now…this is a huge lie.

Her mother finally bites into the apple and promptly falls onto the floor. Regina manically laughs and swirls around in a magical cloud. The smoke quickly clears and Regina is no longer in her old witch outfit. She is full-on cartoon Evil Queen. She dons a long velvet purple dress with a gold belt. She's even wearing a crown.

 _This is what I was hoping she'd wear_. Emma thinks, still slightly confused but not terrified, as the rest of the crowd seems to be.

The Evil Queen bends down and looks right into Snows face. "Sweet dreams." She says and then disappears into another cloud of purple smoke.

The crowd is dead silent as Charming rushes toward his wife.

Then someone laughs. Cackles really. "Brava darlings." Zelena says while still laughing. Upon hearing this Snow sits up in Charmings arms and begins to laugh as well.

Suddenly the whole party of people realizes that the previous scene has just been one big prank. Laughter erupts in the room and there are even a few cheers. Snow stands and gives a little bow. Charming is looking at her furiously. He's evidently not happy to have been tricked. But soon even they are kissing and making up.

Emma looks around the room to see if Regina has come back in. When a few minutes go by and the older woman is still missing Emma begins to get worried.

Emma begins searching for Regina. She isn't sure why, but she feels the need to make sure the other woman is okay. She finds her pretty quickly pacing in the empty kitchen.

"Hey." Emma says. Regina's head snaps up at the sound.

"Hello."

"What's wrong?" Emma asks. She isn't even going to ask if the other woman is okay because clearly she is not.

"I almost forgot." Regina says as she stops pacing. Her voice sounds hollow even to her own ears.

"Forgot what?" Emma inquires, very confused.

"What it was like to have everyone look at you with fear." She leans back against the countertop and closes her eyes. She keeps getting flashbacks of scared villagers with hate in their eyes.

"Everyone knows it was only a prank Regina." Emma assures her.

"Yes…but it wasn't always."

"You're not that person anymore." Emma reminds her as she stands next to her.

"I AM!" Regina practically shouts in a distressed tone. Much calmer she continues. "That wasn't an Evil Twin of mine who did all of those horrible things. That was ME. Maybe it only showed one aspect of my personality…but that part of me will still always be there."

There is a pause before Emma speaks. "I get it." She says in a soft tone. "I hate when people pretend like it wasn't me who did all of those horrible things as the Dark One."

"Yes, but at least you were cursed. I chose the darkness." Regina says eyeing her.

Now it's Emma's turn to get worked up. "Fine I was cursed! But trust me when I say that the curse didn't put any ideas in my head that weren't already there." She takes a few deep breaths and continues. "Normally my conscience would override all of those nasty thoughts but the darkness just…turned down the volume on my conscience."

They are silent for a few minutes now. Both of them are thinking about all the people they've hurt.

"How do you do it?" Regina finally asks. And closes her eyes again.

"Do what?" Emma asks and closes her own eyes.

"How do you deal with the pain of everything you've done?" Her tone makes it clear she is not judging Emma but really asking for advice.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that? You've been fighting the darkness a lot longer than I have _."_ She counters.

"Yes but some moments…it still feels like the weight of everything I've done is so heavy it could crush me." To her shame her voice breaks at the end of the sentence.

"I'd imagine I do the same thing you do." Emma says and then finally looks at the other woman. "I think about all the people I love. Like Henry. He's counting on me to be better."

Regina nods her head in understanding. Henry has always been her greatest motivator for change.

Emma continues speaking. "But really what helps is…talking to you."

Regina opens her eyes and looks at Emma. Her surprise is evident. "We haven't talked about these types of issues in a long time." She comments.

"We don't have to be discussing heavy issues for me to take comfort in your presence. You calm me down…just as much as you rile me up." She says the last part with a quick smile. "It's nice to just joke around with you or talk about Henry. Knowing that you're possibly the only person who understands the pain is enough. I don't need to necessarily be talking about it."

The two women are now staring at each other. The intensity of Emma's gaze is almost enough to make Regina look away…but she can't. She's never felt so understood and…loved, in her entire life.

They are already so close together. Emma can see every detail of Regina's face perfectly. When Regina starts to move in even closer Emma's brain begins to short circuit. _She is definitely going to kiss me this time! Maybe I wasn't crazy to think that she would have the other day._

As they move even closer their hands accidently brush together.

All of a sudden every timers in the kitchen is going off at once. The appliances are blinking and going crazy with noise.

Emma pulls back and gives a frustrated groan. She whips her hand in an angry motion and suddenly all the machines are silenced. Before either woman can say anything, Snow is rushing into the kitchen in a panic.

"What happened?" She demands in a breathless voice.

"Magical issues dear. " Regina says dismissively.

Snow gives Emma a knowing look and Emma suddenly feels like a teenager whose mother just caught her making out with her boyfriend. "Try not to break anything." Snow says and leaves the kitchen. Regina looks at Emma in confusion. Now she is even more curious about what the blonde had told her mother.

The two women give each other a tight lip smile.

"Well, I'm going to go see if I successfully scared our son." Regina says and begins to walk away.

She turns around in the doorways though and gives Emma a genuine smile. It isn't large but it lights up her eyes. Emma thinks that Regina looks like she wants to say something but instead of voicing whatever thoughts were forming she simply leaves without another word.

Emma lets herself slide down until she is seated on the tiled floor with her back leaning against the cabinets. She leans her head back and closes her eyes. It's getting late and she's getting tired. It was a long day at work…not to mention all the emotional stress of the day. She is like 90% positive Regina would have just kissed her if her mom had not interrupted them. She would be lying if she said she wasn't disappointed that it didn't happen.

She is starting to get this strange feeling though that they'll get another opportunity. It's like fate keeps allowing them these little moments together. Not to mention all the strange magical occurrences. That had to mean something significant right?

But even if it turns out that (for the first time in her life) fate wasn't driving this, Emma still knows that being with Regina is the right decision. They may be polar opposites…but she also has never had so much in common with another person. When they're together it just…feels right.

"Hey, your going to get your pretty dress, dirty." Says a voice from the doorway.

Emma looks up and sees Dr. Song walk into the kitchen.

"I guess I'm not a very good princess." Emma responds dryly.

He laughs and sits down next to her on the floor.

"That's okay. I hear you make a pretty good sheriff." He compliments and bumps her shoulder gently.

"Thanks." She mumbles, slightly uncomfortable being hit on only moments after she and Regina almost kissed.

If she looks through the doorway she can see Regina and Henry talking in the next room. Regina's smiling. A bright smile that she only gives their son _. Or me._ She realizes that Regina does look at her that way, maybe not always like Henry, but often enough.

"Is there a reason you were sitting alone on the kitchen floor?" He questions curiously.

"Just thinking." She says.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asks.

She knows he's not intending to be pushy but she's really not interested in talking to anyone, particularly him, at the moment. She knows she's acting rude though so she tries to make her voice sound more pleasant when she responds.

"Nope, don't worry." She wants to get the conversation away from herself so she asks him what he thought of the prank her mother pulled on everyone.

"It was pretty scary." He admits with a chuckle. "I had never actually seen the Evil Queen in person in the Enchanted Forrest, so this was kind of thrilling for me."

Emma laughs as well. "Yeah I get that." She remembers what it was like falling through the portal and seeing Regina in all her Queenly glory for the first time. It was both terrifying and a bit exhilarating.

She unconsciously looks for the brunette again through the doorway. She sees Henry talking to Lily but there is no sign of Regina.

Emma frowns.

"So is the Queen the reason you're thinking on the floor alone?" He deduces.

Emma looks at him, startled. _How had he known that?_ He laughs at her reaction.

"You two have been pretty inseparable since I got here." He explains. When it doesn't seem as though she is going to respond he repeats his question. "So is she?"

Emma wants to tell him to mind his own business but she knows that he is just trying to be nice.

"Partly." She responds.

"Does she know how you feel about her?" He asks.

Again, her first reaction is to deny his statements.

But she doesn't want to do that. She doesn't want to deny her feelings…because they are _good_ feelings.

She also doesn't want to lead him on at all. He needs to know that she is not and will hopefully never again be available.

 _Never again?_ The thought hits her hard. It's the first time it has occurred to her that, if she doesn't mess things up, this is the last relationship she will ever be in. The thought is both terrifying and exhilarating. She hadn't let herself hope for a forever with someone since Neal.

"I've never told her." She says after several moments of contemplation.

"You should." He tells her. "There is no need to be afraid. Everything will work out."

"How do you know?" She asks, startled by his confidence. "How do you even know so much about this?"

"Emma, it's literally my job to stare into people's eyes all day." He reminds her. "People are right to say that the eyes are the windows to the soul."

Emma takes great comfort in his words. She pats his shoulder and tries to stand up. He quickly gets up and helps her to his feet.

"Thanks." She says, and he knows it's not just for the assistance getting up.

She quickly leaves the room to go find Regina. She thinks it's time for them to talk.

When she can't find the other woman right away she finds Henry and asks him where she went.

"I think she's outside." He informs her. "She seemed kind of upset. I'm going to assume it's with you considering there was another magical mishap earlier. But I don't want to know about it." He says with a grin.

His knowing smirk confuses her but she has no time to comment on it since she is already looking for her jacket so she can go and hopefully find Regina.

The same moment that Derek sat down next to Emma, Henry began to question his mother in the next room. He had initially been excited when she came up to him. He told her how awesome the prank was and how cool it was that she was able to do such a thing with Snow. She could tell he was proud of her, even if he didn't say it in so many words.

Now that the conversation has settled he remembers he has questions for her.

"So I'm guessing you and mom caused the alarms to go off in the kitchen." He says. His tone indicates that his is in no mood to be lied to.

She sighs. "Yes Henry, it was a magical mishap." She explains.

He groans. " You guys were fighting again?"

"No, we most certainly were not fighting." Regina assures him.

Something in her tone must have caught him off guard for now he is looking at her curiously. "If you weren't fighting then why…" He begins to question her. Then the possibility of what they could have been doing the kitchen hits him.

He gasps, "Ew, never mind. I don't think I want to know."

"Henry what are you-"

"No it's fine." He cuts her off. "I'm happy for you. I just don't really want the details."

She stares at him a moment. It only then occurs to Regina what conclusions Henry had come to. Although he's not so far off base, she still finds it a little disturbing that her little boy is thinking such things.

"Henry we weren't-" She tries to correct him but he cuts her off again.

"Seriously I'm good with it." He assures her.

She's about to reprimand him for interrupting her so many times when she hears laughter cutting though the rest of the noise of the party.

Maybe it's because she's become so attuned to Emma, that she hears her over everyone else. The laughter really wasn't all that loud. Nonetheless, Regina hears it and looks into the kitchen behind her. She sees Emma sitting on the floor next to that pretty doctor who is so infatuated with her. They are both smiling at each other like they shared some private joke.

An irrational wave of jealousy rips through Regina. She clenches her fists for a moment before turning around and focusing back on her son. The moment passes too quickly for Henry to notice what occurred but he does pick up on his mother's sudden mood change. It looks to him like she's fighting down a sudden rage, and dressed like she is, that's a pretty scary combination. However, when she finally speaks to him, her voice sounds more broken than angry.

"Henry, you know better than to interrupt people while they are speaking." She half-heartedly reprimands.

"Sorry." He says, still worried about her. "You alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine dear. I think I'm going to get some fresh air." She says in her overly pleasant Mayor voice.

"Okay?" He is skeptical and watches her go out the back door. Not even bothering to get her coat first.

He remembers that he may not _want_ to know what her problem is at the moment.

 _Idiot._ Regina reprimands herself while pacing the backyard. _There is no need to feel jealous. It's not as though you saw her making out with him. And even if you did, you two aren't dating. So what if you almost kissed? She's never even overtly expressed an INTEREST in dating you. She is a grown adult and can talk to whomever she wants. Even if it is a semi-handsome doctor who has a crush on her._

She stops pacing and sits down on the swing of the jungle gym.

She couldn't let this go on much longer. She had to know where she stood in Emma's life. _Just because you act like a couple, doesn't make you a couple_. This knowledge didn't stop thoughts from appearing in her mind about how great of a couple they could be...already were really.

"Hey." Regina hears the very familiar voice and looks up.

Emma is shuffling outside and rubbing her hands on her arms. In a different situation, Emma may have laughed at the image of Regina in her costume, on a swing set. Now is not that moment though.

"Aren't you freezing?" Emma asks her.

Regina hadn't honestly realized how cold she was until that moment. With a flourish of her hand, her jacket appears on her lap. She slips it onto her shoulders without saying a word to the blonde in front of her. She doesn't know what to say. She is happy that Emma is here with her and not inside with the doctor, but she is also still pretty emotional from her bust of jealousy earlier.

Emma sits down on the swing to her right. After a few moments she starts to kick her legs back and forth slowly. The silence stretches for only a minute before Emma feels the need to say something. Anything really. The vibes coming off of Regina right now are not pleasant.

"I've always loved jungle gyms." She states. "I never really got to play on them as a child though. Now, they remind me of Henry. Of how, we use to meet as his castle when he first brought me here."

"Oh yes, the castle that I destroyed. How could I forget?" Regina replies bitterly.

Emma mentally kicks herself for being so stupid. Of course Regina wouldn't want to talk about this when she was already in a mood.

She _really_ wants to change that mood.

"Yes you did." Emma agrees. This gets Regina's attention. "But, you built a new one. A better one. A safer one."

The intensity of Emma's stare as she says this is too much for Regina. She gets the feeling that they are talking about more than just a jungle gym right now.

"Are you trying to make a metaphor, dear?" She asks to lessen the serious turn this conversation has taken.

Emma breaks the eye contact and chuckles. "No, I wasn't actually…it makes a pretty good one though."

"Yes, you have a gift." Regina says sarcastically.

They let silence drift back into the conversation after that. Emma looks all around the yard. It surprisingly hasn't snowed yet, but still everything around them looks dead and cold. The fairly large house in front of them however looks warm and inviting.

"I use to imagine having a house like this one day." Emma reminisces. "Having a family complete with a dog and a jungle gym."

"What changed?" Regina asks. She too wanted similar things in her youth. Although they didn't have playgrounds in the Enchanted Forrest, the sentiment is the same.

"I had Henry." She explains. "I didn't think I deserved to have a perfect little family, if I couldn't have him be apart of it. I also lost Neal. When he left I knew I would probably never trust someone in that way again. I never thought I would get married or have a family."

"What about now?" Regina asks her. "You have Henry, and your family, do you still think about that life?" Regina can't stop her curiosity. Emma isn't always this open and Regina isn't about to waste the opportunity.

"I don't know." Emma says honestly. "So much has been going on since I arrived in Storybrooke that I never really had time to think about it. Now…I don't know." She stops her inward reflection and looks at Regina with a small smile. "How about you?"

"What about me?"

"Would you want that life. To get married? Have more children?"

"Marriage didn't work out so well for me the first time." She says with a wry smile. "After the King I never thought I would get married again. But…maybe. I have learned enough in my life to know to never say never."

"What if I asked you?" Emma can't stop the question from coming out. The thoughts of a forever with the woman next to her had already been in the forefront of her mind and she couldn't stop it.

"To marry you?" Regina asks for clarification. She understood the implication but was so taken aback by the question that she needed to make sure she wasn't hearing things. Emma however, doesn't seem to want to respond. She takes her silence as confirmation. "That's a bit presumptuous of you. You've never even asked me out."

Emma is grateful for this response. The mood feels significantly lighter than when she had blurted out the stupid question. "We do already share a child." Emma jokes.

"Well I'm not committing to anything until I see the ring." Regina jokes right back.

"Oh Dam, I knew I forgot something." Emma laughs. "I think you need to give me some time to save money for a really nice one then. Unless a certain Mayor wants to raise my paycheck?"

Regina gives her a playful glare that clearly states 'good try, but not a chance.' Her mind marvels at how 10 minutes ago she was despairing because Emma may like someone else, and now here they are talking about getting married. Even if they are just kidding around. _Although, it doesn't really feel like a joke._

"Yeah that's what I figured." Emma says when she sees the look. "I guess you'll have to wait a while."

"I can be patient when I want to be." Regina informs her. Emma just nods her head and give a soft laugh.

When silence starts to take over again, it's Regina's turn to dispel it.

"Why would you want to marry me anyway?" She knows it was a hypothetical situation but Regina can't help but think that the blonde would have a better chance having the perfect family life that she once wanted if she married someone else, like the doctor, instead of her.

Regina's tone is light but Emma can detect the insecurity behind the words. It's the same feeling she has of not being good enough to be wanted by someone. Emma wants to tell Regina that she would marry her because she loves her, but the words get caught in her throat. It seems like a huge jump to make during this current conversation.

"Why wouldn't I?" Emma asks instead. When Regina just gives her an incredulous look she knows she needs to convince the older woman how special she is. "I would say you're beautiful and smart and funny, but those are very generic terms. And you are anything but average." She begins and pauses to think about everything that is Regina Mills. "You always look flawless yet you're effortlessly pretty. And if your costume earlier is any indication, you will be forever. You're the mother of my child. I couldn't have wished for someone better to raise him. You're strong and courageous. You're my literal savior from the darkness. You're…my friend. I would have to be stupid to not at least consider it, right?"

By now the swings have stilled completely and the two women are staring at each other. Regina has an amazed look in her eyes and a small watery smile upon her lips.

Emma's heart swells by the reaction. She didn't even state half of what she loves about Regina but it was enough to make the other woman quite sure of the connection they share.

Regina reaches out a hand and pulls the chain of Emma's swing toward her. Their seats bump together lightly. With her free hand Regina reaches out cups Emma's cheek.

Warmth is spread though Emma's body. The small gesture has left her entire body flushed. She convinced that the actual air temperate outside has even been raised by about 20 degrees.

Regina looks longingly into her eyes. "I'm going to kiss you now." She informs Emma in a soft voice. "And I don't care what breaks, or who interrupts. Okay?"

Emma is rendered speechless but manages to nod her head in confirmation. Regina's smile widens and she leans in and their lips finally, blissfully, meet.

A surge of magic rips through them. The overwhelming sensation travels from the tips of their toes to the tops of their heads. A burst of light explodes from where their lips are still attached like a shock wave.

The kiss was more powerful than any either of them had ever had…and not just because of the magic coursing through them.

The two women pull back and look at each other in sheer amazement.

"Was that…?" Emma begins to ask.

"Yes." Regina answers cutting her off.

True Love.

Emma laughs in ecstasy. "What curse did we even break?" She thinks to ask.

Regina is beaming in a self congratulatory way. _She knew it! She knew what their magic was telling them!_ She tries to focus on the question though.

"I think someone should probably go check the town line." She finally concludes.

Emma can't seem to do anything but laugh and stare wide eyed at the other woman. Finally she pulls her into a midly-awkward seated hug.

"So...true loves?" She whispers in the brunette ear.

"Hmmm. Yes."

"It does make the marriage thing a bit less presumptuous." Emma says pulling back to look at Regina while still keeping a hold on her.

"Perhaps we should start with dinner?" Regina suggests. "Henry isn't going to be home tomorrow…"

"I'll be there." Emma quickly accepts the invite and kisses Regina again.

This time the kiss begins to become heated. It has Emma practically moaning. "I wish we there right now." Regina whispers when they finally let up to take a breath.

"That can be arranged." Emma says hoping up from her seat and pulling Regina up as well."

"Henry…" Regina begins as she remembers that they drove him to the party.

"I'll ask someone to bring him home." Emma says.

Regina shakes her head no. "Text him, and tell him to stay the night here." She winks and then pulls the blonde flush against herself.

Emma's eyes light up at the implications and she kisses the brunette firmly and holds on tight as their combined magic swirls around them. A new, pink colored, smoke transports them away.


End file.
